Thankfulness

I feel like my thanksgiving post every year is my favorite post to write.

I;ve written a few posts on thanksgiving - here http://humanisthappiness.blogspot.com/search?q=thanksgiving

Mostly - what I am thankful for - is the fact that I am even alive. A few years ago - I almost died. But - because of modern medicine, my life was saved. Beyond that - it's really stunning I am alive at all.  My parents met and because one particular sperm of my father's and one particular egg of my mother's met up - I exist.  If she had gotten pregnant a different month - someone else would have existed.

It's the same for my son. I get pregnant in a different month and I have a completely different kid.

A lot of life is about chance. It's chance that we exist at all. It's chance we have managed to live as long as we have  - however long we have been alive.

A lot of people struggle with uncertainty and chance. I don't. I accept it as - life. That's just how things are. I can try to fight it - but - it would be pointless as things just happen.

To me, as a Humanist, I feel it is better to just accept that change plays a part in my life and work around it. I can do what I can to change the odds in my favor, but really - I can't totally control what happens.  So - I chose to be grateful for what I do have and can control.

I am thankful I am alive. Despite the fact it is sometimes hard and painful. I REALLY like being alive. It beats the alternative. I really am glad that I have wonderful people to share my time on earth with. As annoying as they can sometimes be - I'm glad to know them.

And that goes for everyone I've met. It's all part of the experience of being alive.

So - thank you - my readers - for being on this journey with me. I am humbled by your support of this crazy thing I do - teaching people about Humanism. 

Gratitude

On this thanksgiving week, when we pause to remember all we are thankful for – I wanted to write a little something about gratitude. Gratitude is really important. Don’t think about gratitude as an obligation. Gratitude actually connects you more strongly to those around you and reminds you that you are not in this world alone. Seriously. It feels really good. So remember to spend some time this week really being grateful for everything in your life.

Can’t think of anything? Consider the Humanist approach. We Humanists are never at a loss on what we can be grateful for. That is because, to paraphrase Robert Ingersoll, we know that we are indebted to the good men and women who went before us for all that we are, all that we know and all that we have.

Seriously, if someone hadn’t invented the toaster, we would still be trying to toast bread over open flames. Youch! We know that if it weren’t for the scientists and the physicians who applied science to the art of healing we would still be at the mercy of witch doctors. We know that if it hadn’t of been for brave men and women who stood up, fought for and died for our freedoms, we would not have freedom of belief today.

So if nothing else, be grateful for the fact that throughout history, there have been men and women who have refused to accept the status quo and have tried to do better for themselves and for their fellow humans. Without them, we would still be living in caves. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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Addtional note (2012): The soldier in the picture above is: Sgt. Colin Pearcy Retired U.S. Army. The picture was taken when he was recovering from injuries sustained while he was on patrol in Baghdad in 2007. General Pace awarded him the Purple Heart while he was recovering from injuries to his legs and arms. For more information: http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=46807

Gratitude

This is thanksgiving week. Most of us will be on our way to spend time with our families. Some of us might be looking forward to it, others, might be viewing the pending holiday with some trepidation.

Regardless of how you are feeling, consider this; a common death bed wish is that people wish they would have spent more time with their family. We all get caught up in our day to day lives. It is easy to forget that it is our relationships with others that give our lives meaning. 

We all have obligations. Some is to work, some is to our friends and some is to family and some is to ourselves.  It is whether we find a way to balance those obligations well and give ample time to our family, which will define how successful and happy we feel.

Yes, family can be annoying. But they are often a closer bond to us than any other. Which is why we are so adept at prioritizing them lower than we probably should. Family will be there regardless.  Don’t take your family for granted. For better or for worse, be grateful you had them. Not everyone is so lucky. 

What am I thankful for?

What I am thankful and grateful for Thanksgiving 2014

This has been a tough year for me. Sure, lots of good things happened, but lots of terrifying things did too.  I was hospitalized. My husband had health problems. We struggled financially and have come through it alive and in fairly good shape.

So – what am I thankful for.

My husband for being my rock and helping me when I need it. He picks up my slack when I can’t do things as I pick up the slack for him. Ours is a true partnership in the best sense of the word. I don’t know what I would do without him.

I’m also grateful for my son. We almost didn't have a child, so it’s still a big deal we have him. And despite all the difficulties of being a parent, I really do enjoy it. There are no other people I want to spend time with as much as I want to spend time with my husband and son.

My family and my inlaws. I am really lucky to have wonderful people in my life. People I can discuss politics with and personal problems with and get great advice. I have some REALLY smart people in my family and I am glad that technology lets me talk to them regularly.

I am glad that I live when I do so that our health problems didn't kill us. Technology, doctors, nurses, etc – everything that goes into modern health care is wonderful and lifesaving. I would not be here if someone hadn't figured out how to do a cat scan or laproscopic surgery.

Television and the internet. I am addicted to Bollywood movies and thanks to things like Netflix and my TV – I can see a world full of movies in my living room with my feet up nursing a broken toe while writing this blog. And this makes me very happy.

I love my crockpot and the fact my mother in law gifted it to me. It has made cooking for my family so much easier.

I love Pinterest. Tonight’s dinner was a crockpot recipe I found on Pinterest and – again, there’s the internet and crowd intelligence working well for my personal benefit. So to the people who post recipes etc – thank you. Thank you to the geeks who created the site and the people who created and maintain an open internet for me to use.

Science. At the moment, my son and his friends are raising tadpoles in a tank on my porch. It’s a porch I like sitting on when it rains. I like looking out in my yard at night under the moonlight – with the frogs chirping. As I sit and enjoy nature, I am reminded about all we know about nature because we figured out a way to objectively search for the truth through a methodology known as science.  And it is this search for knowledge that has created all the things that make my current life so wonderful – and of course science helped enable the technology that saved my life.

Mostly, I’m just thankful that I am alive to experience life. The good and the bad. And I’m thankful that you, who are reading this, find value enough in my writing to stick with me and continue reading my thoughts and ideas as crazy as they sometimes are.

I hope you are as grateful and thankful to be alive as I am.